How To Use Football Blocking Pads

If you plan on coaching or volunteering for a team, you need to learn how to use football blocking pads. Blocking pads are useful tools for football players. They are designed to help football players develop technique and to get familiar with blocking. Here’s how to teach players to use blocking pads.

The first step is to teach them safety. Players can injure themselves if they are hitting the pads incorrectly. Teaching technique should prevent many injuries. Start by teaching the player to attack the blocking pad head on, have them keep a low center base and hit the blocking pad with their head up. Upon contact with the blocking pad, the player needs to keep his/her feet moving.

After establishing safety, then the coach can break down drills by position with blocking pads. Offensive linemen will use the blocking pads to establish technique and learn to get up under an opposing defender’s pads and drive them back. Have a coach or player line up on the opposite side, holding the blocking pad and running toward the linemen, from there the linemen runs into the pad and drives the pad and the player back.

Blocking pads can teach defensive linemen how to break off an opposing lineman. Have a player line up opposite the defensive lineman, upon a whistle or cadence have the player with the blocking pad run toward the defensive lineman, the lineman can use hand techniques such as a rip or swim move. A rip is where the defender engages the blocker then tilts his/her elbow back and brings it forward in an uppercut motion. This is normally done with the inside shoulder and is geared to bring separation between the defender and the blocker. A swim move is where the defender motions his/her inside shoulder , the motion should mimic a freestyle swimming motion, and move to the outside of the blocking pad. This gains separation and increases the chances of the defender making a play.

This is just a snapshot of what blocking pads can do. They can simulate collisions for running backs, wide receivers, cornerbacks and safeties. Blocking pad drills can establish technique for both offensive and defensive linemen. The main emphasis when using blocking pads is safety and correct technique. Proper coaching should prevent many injuries and help players develop techniques they need to be successful in game situations.